[1] : The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

impasse \im`passe"\ a^n`paums"; e. i^mp.as", n. f.
   an impassable road or way; a blind alley; cul-de-sac; fig., a
   position or predicament affording no escape.

         the issue from the present impasse will, in all
         probability, proceed from below, not from above.
                                                  --arnold
                                                  white.
   webster 1913 suppl.

[2] : WordNet (r) 2.0

impasse
     n 1: a situation in which no progress can be made or no
          advancement is possible; "reached an impasse on the
          negotiations" syn: deadlock, dead end, stalemate,
           standstill
     2: a street with only one way in or out syn: blind alley, cul
        de sac, dead-end street
see also:
deadlock dead end stalemate standstill blind alley cul de sac 
dead-end street 

[3] : Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0

49 moby thesaurus words for "impasse":
   bar, barrier, blank wall, blind alley, blind gut, block, blockade,
   blockage, bottleneck, box, cecum, choking, choking off, clog,
   congestion, constipation, corner, costiveness, cul-de-sac,
   dead end, dead-end street, deadlock, dilemma, embolism, embolus,
   extremity, fix, gorge, halt, hole, impediment, infarct, infarction,
   jam, obstacle, obstipation, obstruction, pickle, plight, pocket,
   scrape, sealing off, stalemate, stand, stand-off, standstill, stop,
   stoppage, strangulation

Impasse >> I Words
Impasse, definition of term: Impasse
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